At home with... Christy Dignam

Given that the dynamic Aslan frontman is a Northside Dubliner at heart, it’s hardly any surprise that he’s been living these past 13 years in a terraced house on the Navan Road, 10 minutes from the city centre. As he explained to me, “It’s quiet here. I come from just up the road in Finglas, which has gone a bit wild of late, and I like the buzz of a city anyway. I like being convenient to shops and close to family and friends, so I’m really happy here.
“We once tried to live in the country," he adds, "but it got very lonely for my wife when Aslan were away gigging, so we had to come back to the city. Also, the rest of Aslan all live quite close, except for Billy who’s up in Drogheda. But I’m not really one for hanging out with other musicians. I did all that back in my Pink Elephant days, so I really regard my home as a quiet sanctuary where I get away from the madness of the music for a while. We’ve a great little Yorkshire Terrier called Jack here too.”
Not many people know that Christy is a keen birdwatcher, and he pursues his hobby from this house. “The Royal Canal’s right behind our house and I go down there a lot for the wildlife. It’s a great way of getting away from the noise of the music business and gets me out for a bit of fresh air.”
Christy isn't one of those artists who complain if somebody asks for his autograph when he’s just popped out for a paper. “It really annoys me when I read about people complaining about intrusion into their privacy. If that’s how they feel they shouldn’t have gone into the business. I remember a few years ago reading about Damien Rice talking about pulling his album because he didn’t want all that fame and stuff. It’s a load of bollox! If I wanted to remain anonymous I wouldn’t release an album with my name on it! These people court the press when it suits them, and then want a wall around them. It’s hypocritical to me, this pose of, ‘I’m so important the media are hounding me’. Most people know where I live, so there’s always people dropping in. Anytime I’m recognised it gives me a nice feeling. If you’re on a bit of a downer it can give you a lift. Apart from anything it proves that all the publicity is working and the success of the band means something. These people should realise it’s only when they stop being recognised that they have a problem. It’s a small price to pay for the kind of life it can give you.”
He recalls once receiving some astute advice on fame from Philip Lynott. “He told that when you experience fame it’s not you who changes, it’s other people. He said that if somebody puts on a pair of sunglasses and walks down O’Connell Street nobody notices. But have a hit single and do that and everybody says, 'Who does that bollox think he is?' And it’s true! I know inside that no matter what fame I have, I’m still the same fuckin’ eejit that grew up in Finglas.”
Christy seems to be admirably grounded in his life, having put his past drug problems behind him. “I still have to be vigilant though, as I could easily slip back," he says. "The problem for those who give up drugs is that you remember the times of the great buzzes, but you forget the times you were sweating in a room with no money. I keep myself in check by thinking back to some of the worst times when I was on the gear. I was in Greece with Aslan and I broke my bottle of Methadone and had to get through three days without it. I went into cold turkey and it was horrific. So those memories help keep me off it.”
His music collection includes items you might not expect. “Maybe it’s an age thing, but lately I’ve been listening to a lot of classical vocal music, singers like Andrea Bocelli. That’s the Formula 1 of singing. But I also like a lot of contemporary stuff. The Elbow album was fantastic, and the last Damien Rice album was brilliant. I love the production on the Kings of Leon album too. I think it’s important to keep up with new music to refresh your own material, otherwise you can end up sounding like your own tribute band, stuck in the past.”
Nor does he have much time for Irish radio. “I used to feel sorry for American music fans because their radio was awful, compared to Irish radio back then. Now radio is gone shit. When Aslan first signed with EMI Records we went to a convention and they were talking about how in the future radio music would be selected by computers and the DJs would have hardly any say at all. Little did we know then that that’s exactly how it turned out for radio here as well as everywhere else. As for television and the movies, the general fodder that Hollywood comes out with is crap, expect for the odd gem like Slumdog Millionaire, or old stuff like Taxi Driver that you rent on DVD.”
The Aslan man tends to read a lot, although he has little time for fiction. “I really can’t get into books that authors like John Grisham write. They don’t seem to have any connection with the world I know. I much prefer biographies of artists like John Lennon or books about real crime. I went through a phase when I read books like The Road Less Traveled by M Scott Peck and they really helped me to understand how I got into drugs so heavily. These books helped me learn that I had such low self-esteem. The album could be at number one and I wouldn’t have the courage to go into a shop for cigarettes, and that was part of the reason I started sticking needles into myself.
"I watch a lot of programmes on the Discovery Channel about real life crime too. I have a bit of a fascination with stuff that helps me to understand how far human beings can go in their depravity.”

Photos by Dave Cullen